African Journals Online
 South African Journal of Botany

Issues Available About the Journal

Instructions to authors..../ Instructions aux auteurs....

Instructions To Authors:  
Before submitting a manuscript authors should peruse and consult a recent issue of the journal for format and style. To qualify for peer review, manuscripts must be written in clear English according to our instructions. Authors must send FOUR copies of the manuscript printed on A4 paper, using double spacing, all illustrations (originals and copies) and tables to the Editor-in-Chief. Correspondence and proofs will be sent to the corresponding author. Contributions are accepted on the understanding that the authors have the authority for publication. Submission of multi-authored manuscripts implies that all authors have approved submission of the article to this journal, have read it and approved of its publication. Manuscripts should not have been published before and must not be under consideration by another journal. The submission of a manuscript by the authors implies that they automatically agree to assign exclusive copyright to South African Journal of Botany and its Publishers (NISC).  
Authors will receive 25 free reprints  
Extra reprints may be available on request, at an additional charge, but can only be ordered at the proof stage. Reprints in CD-Rom format can be purchased at US$12.50 at the proof stage. The journal does not place restriction on manuscript length but attention is drawn to the fact that page charges of US$20 per page are currently levied. Verbose manuscripts will be returned with a request for condensation. There is an extra charge for colour plates. Italics or underlining should be used only for scientific names, genes and where appropriate, other molecular biology terms.

SI units should be used throughout.

  
Manuscript Format:  
All pages must be numbered consecutively. The double spaced typescript should be arranged using the following order:  
1. Title Page:  
  1. Title: which should be concise and informative. Names of taxa to be used without author citations.
  2. (b) Author(s): *Indicates corresponding author.
  3. (c) Address(es) of Author(s): (*Corresponding author, e-mail).
  4. (d) Received Date: Will be included by the editorial office.
 
2. Abstract Page:  
(a) Abstract: This must be a concise statement of the scope of the work and the principal findings. It must not exceed 5% of the manuscript. (b) Abbreviations: International standardised abbreviations should be used. Other abbreviations used must be listed alphabetically.  
3. Introduction:  
This should argue the case for the study, giving the reader a brief outline of the subject in general. A detailed review of the literature is usually inappropriate. Text references should have the form: Scott and Little (1999) or Smith et al. (1998) for more than TWO authors. All text references must be cited chronologically.  
4. Material and Methods  
Give full scientific name(s) of plant(s) used, as well as cultivar (cv.) or variety (var.) where applicable. All growth conditions should be properly described. Sufficient detail of the techniques used should be provided to allow easy repetition.  
5. Results  
Do not include material appropriate to the Discussion. Refer to figures and tables as Figure/Figures and Table/Tables.  
6. Discussion  
This should highlight the significance of the results and place them in the context of other work. Do not be over-speculative, reiterate the results or exceed 20% of the manuscript length. If desired the Results and Discussion sections may be amalgamated. Avoid the use of the paragraph title Conclusions.  
7. Acknowledgements  
   
8. References  
List alphabetically, according to first author. Use full journal title: Viljoen PJC, Cross LA (1961) Ethylene and fruit ripening. Plant Physiology 135: 513-516 Fahn A (1979) Secretory Tissues in Plants. Academic Press, London, pp 24-50. ISBN 0-3161-091-8 Gilroy S, Trewavas A (1990) Signal sensing and signal transduction across the plasma membrane. In: Larsson C, Moller IM (eds) The Plant Plasma Membrane. Springer-Verlag, Berlin, pp 203-232. ISBN 0-4448-0890-6  
9. Tables  
Each table should be typed on a separate sheet and numbered with Arabic numerals. It should have a title or explanatory caption at the top. Data may not be presented in both tabular and graphical form. Tables must be planned to fit the page vertically with a printed width of either 80 or 170mm  
10. Figures  
High quality originals and THREE copies must be provided. They must be prepared on separate A4 sheets and numbered with Arabic numerals. Figures that are grouped together must be numbered using lowercase chronological letters. Figures should be planned to appear with a maximum final width of either 80, 130 or 170mm. Lettering must be provided by the author(s); freehand lettering is not acceptable. Lettters, numbers and symbols must appear clearly, but not oversized. A suitable final size for lettering is 1-2mm after reduction of the figure. Lettering must be in an unserifted font, e.g. Arial. It is recommended that one uniform size be used throughout the manuscript. Complicated symbols or patterns must be avoided. Graphs and histograms should be two-dimensional and scale marks (turning inwards) provided. All lines (including boxes) should be clear, but not too thick and heavy. Black and white figures, including drawings and maps, must be originals executed in black on a clean white background. Photographs should be of excellent quality on glossy paper, with clear details and sufficient contrast. Illustrations, including all graphs and chemical formulae, must be submitted in electronic format, e.g. TIFF, GIFF, JPEG or EPS, in addition to a print version. Each figure should be clearly identified with figure number and author(s) name(s). There will be an extra charge for coloured figures.  

Diskettes

  
Upon acceptance of a manuscript for publication the author(s) must provide a diskette identical to the hard copy for publication. The following word processing package(s) can be used: Microsoft Word, WordPerfect and Rich Text Format. The diskette should contain an exact copy of the manuscript with tables and figures in separate files.  
Copyright And Consent To Publish:  
Contributions are accepted on the understanding that the authors have the authority for publication. Submission of multi-authored manuscripts implies that all authors have approved submission of the article to this Journal, have read it and approved of its publication. The submission of a manuscript by the authors implies that they automatically agree to assign exclusive copyright to South African Journal of Botany and its Publishers (NISC Pty Ltd). Upon acceptance of an article for publication in South African Journal of Botany, authors are required to provide Transfer of Copyright to the Publishers. The signed Consent to Publish gives the Publisher the Authors' permission to publish the manuscript.  

 

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